Next Generation Group Facilitation

Abstract

This article suggests that the effectiveness of group problem solving using facilitated processes appears to have reached an intellectual and methodological plateau. The time has come to move our thinking about group facilitation research and practice beyond this “plateau.” Warfield's (1986) Domain of Science Model is seen as providing the appropriate frame from which to construct a new set of principles for group facilitation. These principles are set forth for designing an approach to facilitation of communication in problem-solving groups that is appropriate for dealing with the increasingly complex problems characteristic of today's organizations.